ARC and Minnesota Somalis collaborate for Somalia relief program

The Minnesota-based American Refugee Committee has been named a "Top Ten Finalist" for the Peter Drucker Innovation Award for Nonprofit Innovation. The Awards committee recognized ARC for its "I AM A STAR" program, which engages the Somali community in Minnesota and around the globe to help shape ARC's humanitarian response in Somalia."In all, the Drucker Institute received 612 applications from nonprofits in 49 states and the District of Columbia. [The American Refugee Committee] should be proud to stand out as one of the most innovative nonprofits in America," the Drucker Institute reports in a letter to ARC.

Prizes will be awarded to the top three candidates in September. The winner will receive a $100,000 prize from the Coca-Cola Foundation. Information on the Top Ten Finalists can be found here: http://www.druckerinstitute.com/link/drucker-award-finalists-2012/ .

The "I AM A STAR" program was developed in Minnesota, in partnership with Minnesota's Somali community. The program has since expanded globally—engaging Somali communities in other US cities and in places like Norway, Sweden, Qatar, Malaysia, and the United Kingdom—to help provide relief in Somalia, home to the world's worst humanitarian crisis. The "I AM A STAR" program also has engaged more than 30,000 people online to build a global community of support for Somalia.

"This award is a real tribute to the incredible work of the global Somali diaspora, who have come to support this effort in so many ways—and the thousands of people around the globe who have taken creative action through 'I AM A STAR' to help Somalia," said Daniel Wordsworth, ARC's President. "We've learned that there are people all around the world ready to help people in need—and if nonprofits are innovative, creative, and diligent, they can help them do just that."